A Common Life
by Wishal
Summary: Hans finds himself forced to live in Arendelle as a commoner as punishment for his treasonous crimes with only the royal family and a selected few aware of his true identity.(Helsa) Reviews and suggestions are more than welcome.
1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:This is my first ever fanfic so I hope it's all right. Reviews, questions and comments are more than welcome.**

**Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own Frozen, maybe one day...**

The Ocean splashing against the hull of the Jagerfly***** sent sprays of ice cold water onto the deck, freezing Hans to the core. _Two days. Two days till we reach the Isles,_ he thought, _two days till I see disappointment in twelve pairs of eyes. _his own eyes searching the horizon for any break in the stretch of sea...  
"Your time is up," a crewman said as he grabbed Hans by his cuffed hands and dragged him back to his cell," Better make yourself comfortable. You won't be out again for a long while." The crewman tossed Hans back into the cell without a second glance, the cell door closing with a screech.

Hans' eyes wandered around his cell. He knew every inch of it off by heart now. He had spent the past three days sitting in this cell without much to do except sleep, stare or wait for his few minutes of fresh air. _I guess this is what you get for committing treason,_ he thought, a sour laugh escaping his lips, _I almost had the crown but it slipped through my fingers._ Hans wriggled his body in an attempt to remove the numbness that had begun to settle in, finally getting as comfortable as he could, He shut his eyes and felt himself drift off into a restless sleep.

***Jagerfly is Norwegian for 'fighter'.**  
**xxx**

A sharp kick to his ribs brought Hans to consciousness. "Wakey, wakey prince charming. You've got a big day ahead of you," shouted a familiar gruff voice.

"You're in a good mood this morning, Colt," Hans replied, his voice heavy with sleep. Barely able to pull himself to his feet with the ongoing sway of the ship, Hans turned to face Colt, he had short black hear that was trimmed neatly in a way that accentuated his blockish appearance and two short scars across his right cheek that made his stare one that could curdle milk. Much like his head, his broad shoulders and thick neck only added to his forbidding presence.

"A tankard of ale does warm ones heart," Colt chuckled as he led Hans out of his cell. With one of Colts strong hands pressed against Hans' neck and the other settled on his sword, he didn't try to resist.

Colt led him away from the cell and towards the Captain's quarters. Very few men on board The Jagerfly had actually seen the captain since they had set sail. The crewmen took their orders from his First Mate, Colt, and what the crewman did, Hans followed.

Colt pulled open the door to the Captain's quarters without even slightly loosening his grip on Hans' neck. Pushing Hans in front of him, Colt entered the quarters carefully closing and locking the door behind. The room was dark with only a small amount of light entering from between thick curtains and from a small candle sitting in the centre of a big decorative desk. Behind the desk sat a portly man with large brown side-burns and a balding head. His dark brown eyes held only the slightest spark of intelligence. "Have you been enjoying your trip, Mr Westerguard?" The man's voice was thick with the taint of alcohol," I hope you have mister because it's about to get worse for you." Hans studied the man's face for clues as to what lay ahead but found only mild amusement glance across his features."I'm afraid that one of my crew has fallen ill, meaning I'm are one man short," The captain continued.

"And this affects me how?" Hans asked turning to Colt in search of an explanation. A strange friendship had grown between them in the few days Hans had been kept prisoner on the Jagerfly. Colt only shrugged in response.

"Patience Mr Westerguard is a virtue as I am sure you are fully aware," the captain replied taking a large sip from his tankard," You, my young con, are going to take his place among my crew. You will wake when Colt wakes, you will clean the deck, help with the rigging and most importantly you will follow my orders. Do you understand?"

Hans turned to Colt for his thoughts on the matter; Colt smirked and gave him a nod. "I understand," Hans replied. I_ understand that you have no idea who's really in charge,_ he thought but dare not say it out loud, a smirk creeping onto his face.

**xxx**

Colt put Hans straight to work immediately after his meeting with the captain, exchanging his hand cuffs for a wet rag and a bucket of water, telling him that Hans that he was to have the ship floor spotless by nightfall otherwise he would only receive a third of his usual rations. With only the repetitive motion of scrubbing the deck to keep him occupied, Hans soon found his mind wandering. Thoughts of the Arendelle sisters flooded his mind. How he wished that he had actually had feelings for Anna, he had often heard his three eldest brothers talk about love amongst each other. They had each married for power and money, and although none of them were unhappy with their wife's and families they often found themselves discussing how different their lives would have been if they had married for love. When he was younger Hans would hide behind curtains and under tables to hear their discussions, finding a strong desire to hear more about love. He had never seen it since his parent's marriage was also that of social status and not emotion so the feeling continue to evade. As he had grown older he had pursued the emotion as best he could, with his heart constantly on his sleeve. However, his brothers soon learned this about him and used it to exploit him. They often tricked him into giving up personnel information to young girls who they had paid to pretend to be in love with him. It was not long after that Hans decided to seal his heart away from the wicked antics of his brothers and the world in turn.

Hans quickly wiped his eyes as tears threatened to fall. _I will not cry,_ He thought scolding himself for letting his emotions get the better of him_, I am stronger than that. Tears are a weakness._ With a renewed resolve he began scrubbing the floor with more urgency focusing his whole being into the task at hand.

Time flew by as Hans focused himself to his task. Scrub. Dip. Squeeze. Scrub. Dip. Squeeze. He was so focused he almost crawled straight into Colt's feet. Looking up, Hans found himself quite intimidated by Colts enormous size. "It's time for lock up," Colt said as he helped Hans back to his feet, leading him back to his cell," And you have definitely earned your dinner tonight."

Colt left Hans in his cell with his gruel and without his handcuffs as a reward for his good work. Inspecting his wrists in between each bite Hans noticed how much the handcuffs had rubbed at his wrists raw. There were a few patches of dry blood but Hans found no reason to worry as further scrutiny showed that they were only superficial. Leaving his empty bowl next to the cell door for someone to collect, he tucked himself into his sheets and got settled, slowly letting his mind drift off.

**xxx**

Hans woke with an indignant grunt as he hit the side of the cell. With another grunt he tried to move his slightly aching body towards the pile of blankets that were his beds. His hands came across a knot in the wooden floor, just wide and deep enough to give him something to grasp. Only holding on with one hand, he used his other to grab the waste bucket next to the head of the bed, His stomach rolling in time with the waves. After a few dry heaves his stomach finally settled giving Hans time to think.

The ship was oddly silent, no pounding of boots as men ran to follow orders in fact no shouting of orders at all. Hans lifts his head out of the bucket, tilting his head in an attempt to hear better, his thoughts racing. _There should be noise, there should be movement, _he thought.

Silence...

What felt like hours but could've only been seconds stretched by but still there was nothing.


	2. The Punishment

**Author's Note: I've changed the direction this story's going and I would love to hear your thoughts. I also want to hear what you think about the chapter lengths, too short, too long or just right?**

A loud thump caused Hans to flinch and brought the ship back to life. Colt's booming voice could be heard shouting out orders but Hans couldn't quite make them out over the sudden storm of boots thundering across the deck. There were men running everywhere, some unsheathing their swords along the way. Hans quickly jumped to his feet and pressed himself up against the bars hoping to grab the attention of one of the men. Finally his opportunity struck as one of the younger men ran right in front of His cell.

"Stop, What's happening on?!" The man stopped, taken by surprise, and spun on his feet, His face deathly pale."We are... We're... under..." the man stuttered, his whole body trembling.

"What?!" Hans shouted as the man continued his struggle to form a sentence, "Spit it out boy!" This seemed to snap the man out of his trance of fear, if only long enough to speak.  
"We've been attacked," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. The fear returned and the man rushed away like a mouse scurrying away from danger.

_Attacked... by what? _Hans thought, but the man was long gone leaving Hans alone with only his thoughts for company. His mind went straight to the Southern Navy but those thoughts were shoved aside as Hans remembered that no one in his family knew he was a prisoner and if they did they certainly wouldn't care enough to send a ship to save him. _Perhaps Elsa has sent her own personal fleet to finish off the job, _he thought with a laugh, _She was much too kind to order the death of a whole ship just to rid herself of one enemy._

Still perplexed and very curious Hans shifted into a better position between the bars hoping to see the attackers. However his new view proved to be useless, showing him only glimpses of fabric here and the backs of heads there. _Well, whatever it is, it cannot hurt me in here,_ He thought as he moved back to his blanket pile. He sat there with his back against the wall and a blanket wrapped around him to defend him against the morning cold staring at the wooden floorboards in thought.

**xxx**

The screeching sound of the cell door opening caused Hans to almost jump out of his skin. Colt marched into the cell, much to Hans' surprise. "Get up princess, It's time for us to leave," he said, placing his hand lightly on the hilt of his sword, Hans' eyes focused on the sword at Colt's waist.

_A blizzard swarmed furiously around him as he stood above the Queen. "Your sister is dead...because of you," he said, a tinge of pity crossing his heart but he ignored it. He was so close he could taste it...  
"No..." the Queen fell to her knees head in her hands, the moment her knees touched the ground the blizzard cleared. Slowly Hans lifted his sword in up preparing to deal a fatal blow to the Queen whilst she was defenceless, whilst he couldn't see her face.  
"No!"  
Suddenly blast of cold air knocked him backwards, hitting his head hard against the surface of the frozen fjord...  
Darkness soon claimed him._

The memory of the last time he held a sword caused Hans to shiver, he hadn't meant it to end that way but he had no choice, he couldn't return to the southern isles as a failure. The irony of his thoughts was not lost on him. _I guess everything works itself out eventually, _He thought bitterly.  
"Where are we going?" Hans asked as he tried to distract himself from the sick feelings settling into his stomach.  
"It's a surprise," Colt replied, grabbing Hans by the shoulder leading him out of his cell.

"What about the attackers?" Hans asked realizing that the sound of fighting had stopped," Did you take care of them?"  
Colt stopped, his face twisting into an expression Hans had never seen before. Suddenly a sound like crunching gravel burst from between Colt's lips. It took Hans a few moments to realize that he was laughing.

"What? What's so funny?" His voice edged with annoyance as he watched Colt shake with laughter.

"Who... Who told you that?" Colt asked between gasps as he wiped the small tears that had begun to form at the edge of his eyes," Was it one of the young ones? Only a young one would think someone would attack The Jagerfly." Colts body was still vibrating with silent laughter.

"Soo... We weren't attacked?" Hans asked, still unconvinced.

'No... No one in their right mind would attack the Jagerfly especially now that Queen Elsa has revealed her powers. No one will cross her or her allies... except for you..." Colts said, his eyes no longer amused but questioning.

There was no way Hans would tell anyone his motives, that was his secret that he intended to keep till death. Colt accepted the prisoners silence and started walking, not bothering to check if Hans followed him.

**xxx**

Hans found himself being lead to a much smaller ship painted royal purple, a familiar looking pudgy man standing on the bow. Hans quickened his step till he fell in line with Colt.

"So where are we going again?" He asked, his brain furiously trying to place where he had seen that man before.

"Like I said before, it's a surprise. One I must say you are going to enjoy," Colt replied, a sly grin spreading across his face. Without another word the First Mate strode forward onto the boat shaking hands with the man on the front. "Here's the prisoner as agreed," He said, grabbing Hans' shoulder and pushing him forward.  
The pudgy man's stern eyes gave Hans the once-over, clearly disgusted by him. "Her Majesty will be very pleased," He said, a faint smile softening his stern appearance, "You will be largely rewarded once we safely reach Port."

Hans felt his stomach drop with realization," Her majesty?" The pudgy man simply nodded. Hans looked at Colt, eyes wide with distress. "No! You can't! You can't take me back!" He pleaded not bothering to hide his distress," You can't!"

"I already have," Colt replied," and for a mighty nice ship if I may say so myself. It was definitely worth it."

"When my parents hear..."

"Oh they already know and they strongly approve of the idea," The other man said," You will be returning to Arendelle as a common citizen. You have been assigned a living quarter in the palace until you have found a job and another form of accommodation. As for your identity, you will be required to choose a new name as you are no longer associated with your family and the titles that connection entails. Do you understand?" Hans merely nodded, still in shock. "I will be paying close attention to you and will act as your guide into everyday life but don't get comfortable. Her Majesty has made it clear that you may be called upon by her at anytime to perform tasks for the royal family and you are not allowed to refuse," With that the man walked away, leaving Hans reeling from his new punishment.

_Disappointment from my parents I could take, _He thought, _I could handle being the outcast again... but how can I face the Queen of Arendelle and her sister after what I've done...  
_  
Hans didn't even notice as the boat headed towards its new destination.

Arendelle.

**xxx**

Queen Elsa sat at her desk staring longingly at the glass cabinet containing one of her white gloves.

She remembered her surprise at finding Sven strutting around the castle grounds with it hanging off of one of his antlers, it seemed that he had found it one evening whilst Kristoff was collecting ice and thought it was a nice accessory. She had to give him a blue ribbon in exchange for the glove but it was worth it. Those gloves had been a present from her parents and although they used to represent confinement they now represented a struggle that she had overcome. However, she had had to promise her sister that she would never wear gloves again to ease Anna's fear that she would shut herself away again.

At this very moment she wished she hadn't made that promise as she longed for the familiarity and control they provided, her recent decision to have Hans return to Arendelle as a commoner was eating away at her nerves. The idea of having the traitor so close to her family again brought fear to her heart but she had realised she could not bear the idea of someone being executed in her name.

With a sigh she pushed away these thoughts that would only add unnecessary stress. _I have a few days at least to prepare for his return, _she thought, _ A few days to tell Anna. _With a shiver, she rose from her chair with practised grace, using her magic to dispel the frost that had begun to form on her desk. With an elegance that took years to perfect, she strode from her room in search of Anna, hoping desperately that she would take the news well.


	3. The Arrival

**Author's Note: I've received some really helpful feedback which I've taken into account so thank you all for that. I've also decide that this will eventually be Helsa cause why not?! Anyway on with the story, enjoy and don't forget to review :D**

"IS THIS SOME CRUEL JOKE?! Why..." Anna's legs stopped holding her up leaving her crumpled on the floor, back against the hallway wall. Elsa quickly knelt beside her, placing her hand upon her shoulder.

It had taken Elsa two days to build up the courage to tell her sister about Hans' 'new arrangement' and it had taken her another day to actually find the time to do it, royal duties turned out to be quite the tool for procrastination.

"I had no choice... I couldn't let them kill him, no matter what he's done." Elsa said, slowly stroking Anna's hair like she use to when they were kids and Anna had had a nightmare.

"But he lied to me... He tried to hurt you... What if he tries to hurt you again?" Anna's big blue eyes looked up at her, full to the brim with tears," I can't lose you, not again."

"You won't lose me Anna, Kai will be keeping close watch on him and I've had a guard placed on our hallway so that we will be completely safe at night," Elsa's voice was soft and calm even though her insides where churning with worry. Carefully, she got to her feet and helped Anna to hers as well, pulling her into a hug. The sisters stayed that way for a few minutes until Anna took a deep shaky breath and pulled away, still holding onto one of Elsa's hands.

"I'm sure it will be fine... I probably just overreacted," she said as her usual smile spread across her face, lighting up her freckled cheeks," but don't think for one second I'm going to be nice to him."

Elsa gave a light laugh as she pulled Anna into another hug, relief washing over her. With a kiss to Anna's head, Elsa pulled away giving her hand a light squeeze before letting her sister return to annoying her boyfriend.

With a deep breath and long elegant strides befitting a queen, she headed towards the guest quarters where Hans would be staying.  
His room was as far away from the royal quarters as Elsa could allow without being discourteous. _He is still a guest, _she thought,_ although why I feel the need to follow social standings when it comes to him is beyond me._

She soon found herself face to face with the door to his room-to-be. Taking a deep breath she entered the room.

_"__This is your new room dear,"_ _her mother pulled her closer as if to protect her from the chill that had formed in the air, careful not to make contact with Elsa's skin," There's no need to be afraid, we're going to help you control it."_

_Elsa's eyes scanned the room. It was simply furnished with a large bookcase and wardrobe on one wall and a double bed on the opposite one with an array of different blues adding colour life to the room, there was also a small fire separating the bookcase and wardrobe although Elsa would never need it, she did not seem to feel the cold._  
_Directly in front of her however was a large glass window where her father had decided to station himself for the time being._  
_Her father's face was completely blank of all emotion, the only sign of tension being his white knuckles, tightly grasping the window sill._

_"Your father and I will bring you your meals each day. However, if we are busy, Kai or Gerda will tend to your needs," her mother continued, her voice laced with worry," and during the day you will take your lessons. It would not be proper for the future Queen to be uneducated due to a... minor incident." Placing one soft hand against Elsa's back, she led her over to the bookshelf which was completely filled with an assortment of different books." Now we've taken the liberty of stocking this bookcase with all of your favourite books as well as some suggestions from the palace staff but if you..." The Queen cut herself short as she felt her daughter begin to shake." It's okay dear, I'm here," she said, kneeling down till she was looking into the little princess' eyes._

_"I know but I'm... I'm just so... scared," small tears began to fall from the princess' bright blue eyes causing a soft tinkling noise to fill the room as they hit the ground, already frozen solid._

Blinking away the memories that threatened to consume her, Elsa stepped into her old room. She had had it redecorated in preparation for the former prince's 'visit'.  
The room was now shades of brown and red instead of blue, reminding her of autumn time. The bookcase still remained although it was missing some of its books, which had been moved to the royal quarters after Elsa's coronation. Also the addition of a small desk and chair gave the room a friendlier feel than what it had when it had belonged to Elsa.

With long strides Elsa headed towards the window, looking out upon the fjord. It was amazing to think that only just over a week ago it had been frozen solid, for now the summer sun reflected beautifully of the clear blue water which lapped softly along the shoreline. How Elsa wished she could walk along the beach, letting the water wash against her feet and her toes sink into the sand, but sadly it was not proper for a Queen to frolic along the beach especially with the increased work to be done due to the recent 'winter curse' as people had come to call it. _Imagine the sound of waves against the beach and the feel of a summer breeze through my hair. Oh how nice it would be to finally experience summer, _she thought,_ but no, I am stuck inside this castle to discuss trading with stubborn foreign royalty._

She stayed there for a long while simply admiring the view and appreciating the small reprieve from her royal duties. However, just as she was about to leave she noticed a small dot appear at the mouth of the fjord. She watched it as it slowly sailed into port, a small seed of worry planting itself in the pit of her stomach. _Surely Kai has not returned yet, _She thought, _he barely set sail four days ago._ But as the ship got closer to the port there was no denying the distinct royal purple hull.

Elsa took a depth breath, trying to calm her nerves, and turned away from the window, her thoughts just a jumble of emotion and half sentences. _It's fine... He can't hurt you here... everything will be fine,_ she thought.  
Realising that standing around would only prolong the pain she exited the room in search of Anna and Gerda not noticing the frosty trail she left in her wake.

**xxx**

Hans stood at the bow of the boat with Colt on his left and Kai (He had finally remembered the pudgy man's name after a day of intense concentration) on his right, his hands hung loosely from his sides. Kai had told him that he was to remain free of the chafing handcuffs as long as he behaved appropriately although with Colt watching him 24/7, he would have to be an idiot to try something and that was one thing Hans was definitely not.

It felt like hours, but could have only been a minutes, before the ship finally docked. Hans closed his eyes tight hoping that when he opened them again he would find himself on his way to the Southern Isles or better yet in his very own bed in the Southern Palace but Hans had no luck, opening his eyes instead to Kai's impatient glare and Colt's smug grin as they waited for him to disembark.

Careful not to trip down the boarding ramp, Hans walked on to the Arendelle docks however he was not prepared for his legs to have adjusted to constant sway of ships and soon found himself falling forwards onto his hands and knees, and face to face with a pair of very familiar icy blue heels. With a grimace Hans lifted his head following the trail of shiny blue material until he found his green eyes en-rapt by cold blue ones. Quickly, trying to maintain some sense of pride, Hans got to his feet, not once taking his eyes of those remarkable blue ones.

"Your Majesty," He said as he performed a deep bow, again maintaining eye contact.

"Mr Westerguard," the Queen's voice was cold but almost melodic as well," It's a pleasure you could make it. Follow me," with that she headed towards the palace. "Oh... by the way," she continued, briefly halting in her tracks, a small smile paying at the edge of her lips.

"Welcome to Arendelle."


End file.
